Tea Gardens zoning & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Tea Gardens
(Mid-Coast, NSW) - 84.19 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained on the overlays we could measure - no flood mapping covers this suburb, so this is not a suburb-wide verdict.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
84.19 km² - this suburb is highly constrained on the overlays we could measure - no flood mapping covers this suburb, so this is not a suburb-wide verdict.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Tea Gardens's boundary, with the bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft. No flood layer is drawn because we hold no flood mapping for this area.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Tea Gardens
Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 2 Oct 2026
Night movements: observed, lowest 4,000 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
Tea Gardens at a glance
How Tea Gardens is zoned
Buying in Tea Gardens? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.
Across its 84.19 km², Tea Gardens is highly constrained by the planning overlays we hold. We hold no flood mapping covering this suburb, so no flood figure is shown - that is a gap in our data, not an all-clear. Of what is mapped, 89% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 12 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Rural Landscape. The median lot measures about 818 m² across 1,956 parcels.
Who lives in Tea Gardens
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Tea Gardens suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.
Socio-economic standing
ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.
Score 950, and decile 3 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Tea Gardens's 3,288 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Tea Gardens - Hawks Nest, the wider ABS statistical area containing Tea Gardens. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Tea Gardens itself.
3,797 in 2001 to 5,786 in 2025, up 52%.
Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.
Tea Gardens data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Not mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Zoning | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 3 October 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific Tea Gardens address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 4% of Tea Gardens. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Tea Gardens lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Tea Gardens planning - frequently asked
Is Tea Gardens flood-prone?
We don't yet hold flood mapping covering Tea Gardens, so this page can't say how much of the suburb is flood-affected - that is a gap in our data, not an indication that the suburb is free of flood risk. Mid-Coast is the authority to check for flood mapping in this area.
Is Tea Gardens bushfire-prone?
Around 89% of Tea Gardens is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Mid-Coast average of 94%.
Is Tea Gardens under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 4% of Tea Gardens, and over about 12% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 1,000 ft, with an average of 5,000 ft. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in Tea Gardens?
The dominant planning zone in Tea Gardens is Rural Landscape, though the suburb also includes National Parks and Nature Reserves and Environmental Conservation.
Does Tea Gardens have heritage-listed places?
Tea Gardens has 12 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Tea Gardens?
Across 1,956 surveyed parcels in Tea Gardens, the median lot size is about 818 m². There are also 7 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Tea Gardens have a train station?
There is no train station inside Tea Gardens itself. The suburb is served by 38 bus stops.
What is the population of Tea Gardens?
At the 2021 Census Tea Gardens had 3,288 usual residents, with a median age of 69 and an average household size of 1.9 people. The wider Tea Gardens - Hawks Nest statistical area, which contains Tea Gardens, went from 3,797 people in 2001 to 5,786 in 2025, up 52%.
Is Tea Gardens an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Tea Gardens scores 950 and sits in decile 3 of 10 nationally and decile 3 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Tea Gardens?
Median household income in Tea Gardens was $991 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,204 for the typical suburb in Mid-Coast. Median rent was $365 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,420 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pindimar | 5.0 km | Not mapped | 98% |
| Hawks Nest | 5.6 km | Not mapped | 82% |
| North Arm Cove | 7.7 km | Not mapped | 95% |
| Bundabah | 7.8 km | Not mapped | 96% |
| Port Stephens Port Stephens |
8.8 km | 96% | 4% |
| Soldiers Point Port Stephens |
10.7 km | 26% | 23% |
| Corlette Port Stephens |
11.0 km | 20% | 44% |
| Carrington | 11.0 km | Not mapped | 99% |
| Shoal Bay Port Stephens |
11.5 km | 27% | 84% |
| The Branch | 11.9 km | Not mapped | 98% |